We love fall for many reasons – it is the season when we get to plant new trees but also care for existing trees and tuck in our gardens before winter! Our 6th MulchFest was held during the week of October 22nd and we would like to thank all participating schools and also the Town of Oakville for supplying the mulch!

As schools are a major property owner within every city and an important stakeholder of our urban forest, we find it wonderful to have the opportunity and engage so many students in this stewardship act that has a big impact on Oakville schoolyard trees.

We worked with 8 schools this fall and had over 600 students helping and spreading mulch around school trees and gardens.

Thank you St. Andrew Catholic School, Montclair PS, EJ James PS, St. John Paul II Catholic School, WH Morden PS, St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, Forest Trail PS, and Gladys Speers PS, you are MAKING A DIFFERENCE! Ultimately, we hope that getting children outside to care for school yard trees and pollinator gardens fosters long-term environmental stewardship and helps students make responsible decisions about conservation and use of our natural resources.

Besides the numerous benefits for trees and plants from proper mulching, let’s not forget that spending time around trees and in nature also makes us happier, healthier and even improves our students’ academic performance!